Knee Deep
by junienmomo
Summary: A "deleted scene" type of fiction. Another of those happy moments that we would have liked to see from these characters. Take the time to find and listen to the songs noted in the story.


This scene takes place on the day after the Dragonfly test run. Lorelai and Luke have had the "great kiss" phone call, and it's a little later that same afternoon.

"Lorelai, where are you? This is absolutely impossible! I cannot even begin to find Taylor's shoes! What an imbecile he is – these are not a size 6 ½ narrow," complained Michel.

"Michel, just deal with it – you made the offer, your dogs chewed up his shoes, now fix it!" she replied.

Enough was enough! She'd been up for almost 2 days straight, with just barely enough time to shower and put on fresh clothes. The Dragonfly test was over and they'd sailed through with few problems and no major ones at all. There was a stack of comment cards, mostly from Taylor Doose, but those would wait until she and Sookie had caught up on their sleep. Right now Lorelai needed a break, and she knew just where she was headed.

"Sookie? Sookie! Good, there you are. How are things in the kitchen?"

"All cleaned up and ready to go. I managed to convince four of the kitchen staff to stay, in spite of Michel's torture yesterday. Jackson has Davey and they're off to visit Grandma," Sookie answered.

"Sookie, you have to take over out front for a few minutes. I promised Miss Patty and Babette that I would bring them their robes – they loved them so much. It shouldn't take very long, and I want to stop by Luke's for a minute."

"Luke's?" smiled Sookie, with a glint in her eye. "So, you made sure that he knows you're happy, right?"

"Well, I did call earlier, but it won't hurt to look him in the eye and see it for myself," said Lorelai, "I am never sure with Luke."

"Everybody else in town is sure about Luke when it comes to you, but go ahead, have a little fun," Sookie answered. "A little looking in the eye, a little kissing of the face, …" she joked.

Lorelai grabbed the robes and headed out the door. At her car, she stopped and dialed the diner.

Luke answered the phone. "Luke's, whaddya want?"

"Well, I already know what you're wearing, so you don't have to tell me that. It's a blue baseball cap, placed strategically on your head. Then there's a lovely blue flannel shirt covering a fashionable gray T-shirt."

"Lorelai. Hi." She could hear the smile in his voice. He looked down to check if she actually described his shirt correctly.

Lorelai continued, "I can't wait until tonight. I need to see you now. Meet me at the lake, it'll take me about ten minutes to get there, ok?"

Luke scanned the diner. The lunch rush had died down, but the cleanup was still in progress. "Yeah, I can get away. See you there."

Lorelai drove to the heart of Stars Hollow and parked the Jeep. She grabbed the robes and headed towards Miss Patty's, moving as fast as her high-heeled shoes would allow.

(Hurry Hurry from Air Traffic Control is being sung by the Troubadour)

Miss Patty is just inside her studio, supervising her young ballet troupe, while smoking a cigarette and keeping an eye on everything around her.

Lorelai hurried up the steps, tripped on a belt from one of the robes, and landed flat on the stairs, cushioned only by the robes themselves. "Uff!" she exclaimed.

"Lorelai, honey, are you all right?" Miss Patty asked with concern in her voice.

"Yes, yes, everything's OK, nothing hurt but my reputation for natural elegance and grace."

"Oh honey, you never had that reputation. It's not worth much anyway, much better to have lived and loved. And loved a few more times," she added with a wink.

Lorelai grinned. "Here are the robes you and Babette loved so much. I just wanted to get them over to you before I forgot. Thanks so much for your comments about the inn – we'll do our best to keep the most handsome staff possible."

"Oh Lorelai, you are a naughty one!" Miss Patty replied.

"OK, gotta go! Must get back to work!" Lorelai said as she dashed off.

"Dear, your car is in the other direction" Miss Patty commented, but Lorelai was already gone, her heels tapping in rhythm with the music.

Luke glanced out the window as he wiped tables and picked up the last dirty dishes from lunch. He saw Lorelai dashing across the square on her way to the lake. His fingers slipped, flipping the top plate flat onto his shirt, staining it with ketchup and mustard.

"Lane! I'll be back in a couple of minutes!" He dashed up the stairs to his apartment, stripped the now-dirty shirt off and searched frantically for a clean one. Opening the closet, he grabbed one off a hangar, threw it on and headed downstairs.

Miss Patty turned back to her students. A couple of minutes later, she glanced back across the square. To her surprise, Luke bolted out of the diner and headed in the same direction as Lorelai.

"Ah yes, she's a naughty one indeed," chuckled Miss Patty.

Taking the back way, and not wearing high heels, Luke arrived at the lake bridge moments before Lorelai. They stopped on opposite sides of the bridge, chests heaving from the run.

"You know, the definition of 'tonight' can be rather flexible, Luke," said Lorelai as she started across the bridge.

Luke smiled, saying, "It's five o'clock somewhere, you know. Good enough?" He took a step forward.

"My mellow Buffethead! I like that shirt! Did you dress up just for me?" Lorelai flirted as she broke into a trot, quickly covering the length of the bridge.

(Jimmy Buffet song Knee Deep starts to play in the background)

Just before she reached him, her heels slipped and she started to lose her balance, sliding forward into Luke and pushing him off the bridge. He grabbed for her as he fell, but caught himself and landing on his feet in the shallowest edge of the lake. Lorelai teetered on the edge, but straightened up, still holding onto Luke's hands.

Luke arched an eyebrow and said, "I thought you'd appreciate the shirt. How about it – put the world away for a minute?"

Lorelai kicked off her shoes and jumped.


End file.
